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5 Steps to Help You Finally Get Started On Your Book!

If you’re anything like me, you’ve been wanting to write a book for a long time. In fact, I actually found my 6th grade yearbook, and I wrote that I wanted to be an author as my “dream job”!

However, it’s been 14 years since then, and I still haven’t written anything. Why? It’s simple.

It’s hard to get started.

And if you’ve ever thought you wanted to write a book, you know first-hand how hard it is.

But I have awesome news: I finally started! And here are 5 things that have helped get my butt in gear. ⚡️

1. Dig deep into your passion

Ask yourself why you want to write a book. What’s weighing on your heart? What story do you want to tell? Don’t write a book to sell. Write a book to write.

Once you figure out exactly what you want to write, everything else will almost fall into place.

2. Nail down your genre, topic and style

This one is a bit trickier, and I’m still working on this myself. But before you really get down to business (to defeat the huns 😉), you really need to solidify exactly what your story is, which genre it falls under, define your writing voice and the style in which you want to present your story.

As I’m writing, I find that I keep going back and forth between writing styles, and I know this will make it very difficult in my editing process. So, to save yourself the hassle, try as best as your can to nail down the following:

Topic – What do you want to write about? What is the story you want to tell? And WHY. Answering the WHY is probably my favorite part about writing, because it helps me refine my topic. Ask yourself why you want to tell the story you’re wanting to write, and everything else will be much more clear.

Genre – After you nail down your topic, you can further refine it by placing it in a genre. For example, you could want to tell a story about a young woman who moves to a new town, but it could take so many different turns depending on the genre. If it’s a sci-fi, she could encounter a fifth dimension. If it’s a romance, she could fall in love with the mayor’s son. If it’s a thriller, she could be running from her ex-husband. You get it.

Style – How do you want to present your story? Do you want to paint a big picture in the beginning and slowly get into the nitty gritty? Or do you want to start your book off with a bang? Do you want to structure your chapters in short segments, or long ones? Will your story incorporate flashbacks throughout? These are all important things to think about and consider before you begin writing, because they can change the whole dynamic of your book.

3. Outline, baby!

I’ll admit, when I was still in the “I’m thinking about writing a book” phase, I almost skipped the outline step because I couldn’t even be bothered with it.

BUT, once I finally sat down and forced myself to outline my ideas, I felt so much better.

Jot all your ideas down, and then organize your thoughts into a structured outline. From there, you’ll have a much better direction for your book, and you won’t lose track of your grand idea!

4. Join communities (online & offline)

Once you begin your writing journey, reaching out to other writers can be really helpful to you! Having a group of fellow writers and authors at your disposal can help keep you accountable and motivated, and it can provide you with tons of insider tips for the writing and publishing process.

5. Create your writing space

I once read somewhere that you should write in the same place every day, because it will help you to…

Establish a routine

Associate a certain space with writing

Help you keep the same voice

Whether or not these things are true, you should still take the time to create your own special writing space. Why? Because if you think about it, you’re going to be spending a lot of time writing your book, so you may as well be comfortable!

(Note: I feel like I have to mention, I haven’t even done this yet! I’m still hunched over at a desk with bad lighting and a hard, wooden chair. But hey, baby steps!)

I hope these tips help you get closer to your dream of writing a book! Are you in the process of writing a book, or want to get started? Do you have any tips you’d like to share? I’d love to hear them!

It’s so funny that I found this post because for as long as I can remember I always wanted to write a book! I started and stopped started and stopped – granted I was in middle + high school. Then life got in the way. I think you may have inspired me!

These are amazing tips. I finally got my act together and wrote a screenplay. I am writing the novel version of it as well. I am also close to a first draft of my memoir. It took me realizing my experience could be turned into something good that got me writing again. These tips are still great where I am at, thank you for sharing. I think the biggest thing is writing to write. Great tip.

Hi James! I love that you’re turning your experiences into a way to help others. When I got really sick, I also used that as a way to inspire others – it was a great healing mechanism, too! Thank you for your kind words, I sincerely appreciate it! And I look forward to reading your work!

No matter how motivated I am one day. Or how many tips I read for continuing my work on my book(s), I always find that I need another little push. So thankfully that there’s plenty of people helping us move along with our work – thank you.

I am not looking for material at this point in time – I am seeking a ghostwriter or help so I can finish the story. It is SO Wonderful to find people out there to help move you along. I already did an NYU course on jumpstarting the book, etcetera, etcetera, but I do believe the practice of writing daily is the key to organizing and finishing what I started so long ago.
I am thankful for the PUSH also!

Great tips! I have always wanted to be an author.. but haven’t pushed myself in the right direction..
Being self conscious is a writers worst enemy.. I love historical romance, and have hen scratched my ideas.. Since I lost what I started writing to a computer dump.. I believe I will write the old fashioned way.. 🙂

“Don’t write a book to sell. Write a book to write” – love this Jasmine and exactly how I feel. I may not be the most eloquent of writers but getting my experiences and how I feel about certain issues….a little bit of ‘self therapy’ 🙂

[…] inefficient and I gave it away to a kid at the garage sale, but you get the point). I finally started writing my book way, way back in January (oh, God), but it got put on pause because of travel and starting a new […]

Yes do it! It can be really fun to create your own space and change it up once in a while. You can make it super cozy and add lights or pillows or go crazy and add a coffee bar haha Have fun with it 🙌🏼

[…] a career— out of it. I have a few resources for blogging and business, working from home and book writing, but I really wanted to compile a list of sites to help you get paid for freelance writing. Happy […]

[…] a career— out of it. I have a few resources for blogging and business, working from home and book writing, but I really wanted to compile a list of sites to help you get paid for freelance writing. Happy […]

[…] inefficient and I gave it away to a kid at the garage sale, but you get the point). I finally started writing my book way, way back in January (oh, God), but it got put on pause because of travel and starting a new […]